031208

                                                                                Ocala to Wildwood to Tampa, FL

Wednesday March 12, 2008

     3:07am  I feel really rested, but I only got six hours of sleep. I had a dream last night! I don't remember having a dream in years. I dreamt that Vince and Amy  from San Antonio had broken my walking stick in two. I woke up and thought oh man, thank goodness that was only a dream. I love my walking stick. I think what woke me up was that it started to drizzle a little bit. I scrambled to get my stuff together and then it stopped. I think I'm going to go back to sleep.

     7:27am  I just woke up again at my camp. Hell yeah, I got a good ten hours of sleep total. I woke up after six hours and I felt pretty awake.

                   Oh yeah, I remembered another dream I had last night. I dreamt that my project was found out and that these people were onto me. It was weird.

                   I dreamt because I didn't smoke any weed yesterday. Maybe that's why.

     8:20am  I am all packed up and ready to go.

                   lempbrooke.com This guy at the gas station I talked to. He told me a story about this girl who got abducted and killed walking the Appalachian Trail by herself, on Blood Mountain.

     9:16am  I got tired of asking people for rides at the Chevron. I'm going to go stand on the onramp for a little bit.

                   I started flying my sign on that bum's corner and a guy in a Chevy Tahoe just gave me two bucks.

                   This beautiful girl with dreadlocks just gave me a Clif Bar! I was hungry.

     10:32am  Ashley just gave me a whole five dollar bill. I appreciate it, Ashley. Everybody gets credit, thanks.

     10:54am  There's the police. Showtime.

     11:07am  That's awesome. They let me go. They didn't even see the smoke a brother out sign. They just saw the hook a brother up one. They told me that somebody called them and told them they saw my lighting up a joint(Bugler cigarette, total illusion). They asked me if I had any weed on me and I told them I wish I did. One cop said, "Well, that's enough information. I didn't need to know that." Hehe.

     11:49am  Right after the cops ran me off for flying my sign and passing out my website I walked to the Chevron to use the restroom. I walked out and crossed the street and all of a sudden this old couple in a car wave at me and I ask them if they're going South. The guy told me he was going to Belleview. They were at the stoplight, so I ran across the street and they were nice enough to pick me up. I really appreciate it. Everybody gets credit. Thanks a lot.

                   Willie got me out of there! How perfect, hell yeah. Everything happens for a reason. I am in Belleview, wherever the hell this is. It's only nine miles away. Paranoid check. Got everything? Yeah. That old couple told me they had seen me walking around Ocala more than once already. I'm everywhere!

     12:17pm  I'm at the Pilot Truck Stop and Travel Center on 75. I went in the Arby's and bought a burger. I'm going to sit at a table and cut out some more havethisbook.coms. I need to switch out my tape. I am running out.

                   I saw this girl with a Grateful Dead license plate cover and I quickly ran up to her and asked her if she was going South. She told me no, but I for sure gave her my website.

     12:47pm  I got bored of standing out in front of the Pilot and came to the onramp.

     2:40pm  Tom, who works for Gator Pie, he pulled over and picked me up and is taking me to the next exit. I appreciate it, brother. Everybody gets credit, thanks.

     2:53pm  Tom gave me a handful of change, hell yeah. He just dropped me off. I am already at the truckstop at the next exit. I'm in Wildwood. I'm going to see if they sell microcassette tapes. I've got ten bucks. I'll do laundry too. Wildwood Travel Center is where I am at.

                   75/44

     3:47pm  I had a great presentation with Phillip while I was waiting for my laundry to finish. He wants me to say that he thinks the world's greatest problem is selfishness, not ignorance.

                   I am on the onramp. There's a bum on both sides flying signs. I'm all out of money. I used all my money on laundry and a pizza. I've got a Ramen left. I had a good rest doing my laundry and telling that kid my story.

     5:05pm  I was on the onramp for like thirty seconds and Sergei from Russia picked me up. I appreciate it, brother. Everybody gets credit, thanks a lot.

     6:14pm  Me and my Russian friend Sergei, we're coming into Tampa right now. I should take a picture. Cool, I never thought I would be in Tampa so soon. My tapes about to fill up. I already typed up the first half of the other tape I have, so I can tape on that. I need to buy another microcassette tape somewhere.

     6:23pm  I just got dropped off on the side of the highway. There was tons of traffic and Sergei just dropped me off on the shoulder. I told him to get me close to the big buildings. Sergei, he could barely understand me. He told me I was his teacher and stuff. It was so cool that he pulled over for me. He's just a traveling tourist. He told me that the roads in Russia were nothing like here. They were dirt roads and stuff. He said the police were all messed up too. That all they wanted was money. He dropped me off at Exit 42. I am paranoid I forgot something. I've got everything.

                   I want to go look up Chasity.

     6:35pm  I'm walking down Lasalle Street.

     6:41pm  Passing North Willow Street.

     6:52pm  Lasalle ends at Munro Street.

                   I'm going straight. I'm on this road by the Boiling Reels Club. Turning left. Cool, there's a bus stop. I'm going to get me a courtesy ride.

     7:00pm  I walked over to this park here and I'm about to cross over the Hillsborough River Bridge. Some drawbridge. I'm aiming for the tall buildings. Downtown. This nice black dude at that bus stop gave me directions.

     7:07pm  Hmm, I see the John F. Germany library. I'm going to go check my email.

     7:12pm  What a joke. The only way I can come in this library is if I could fit my gear in this little box. I'm going to take a picture of the box. This is America, man. How discriminatory. Thanks for making my story so interesting.

                   Ha, I said that to the librarian as I took the picture and she said, "I think you'll find that true of any library in the United States since 911." I told her, "I've been all over. That's not true at all."

     7:40pm  I went to the plaza right in front of the police station. Gaslight Sykes Park. I ran into this other homeless dude. This crazy shell-shocked Vietnam Vet. I didn't try and tell him my story at all. He did tell me he was going to get some weed pretty soon, so I hung around. The weed never came, so I'm going to walk to the transfer center and catch a bus somewhere and find a place to crash.

                   Right now this other homeless dude Tony told me about a bud of weed he stashed. I'm going to go look for it. He told me it was under this spiral staircase about three of four blocks down the street. I've got a flashlight, so I'm going to try and find it.

     9:11pm  I couldn't find the weed. I found the spiral staircase he was talking about, but I couldn't find the weed. Oh well.

     10:33pm  I walked over to the Greyhound station and I saw this girl arguing. I stood there for a minute with my shirt. Then I went over to the girl and hit her up for my story. She told me sure, but to tell it to her old man too. That he was over at the place where she crashed. She brought me to the church where all the homebums crash. How perfect. So I'm going to crash here tonight. Please Love, protect my stuff while I sleep.

Next day..